


Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Godly Separation

by ArrowheadProductions



Series: Just Demigod Things [3]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Action/Adventure, Adulthood, Canon Compliant, Danger at every turn, Everyone Ships Percabeth, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Friendship/Love, Greek and Roman Mythology - Freeform, Humor, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, No Smut, Original Trio-Centered, POV Percy Jackson, Post-Canon, Post-Heroes of Olympus, Romance, Saving the World, Spoilers for Burning Maze, Swearing, The Gods Keep Screwing Everything Up, Tradtional PJO structure, Well Really Just for the Big Thing, all grown up, percy swears a lot in his head, the first chapter is the most suggestive, the usual stuff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-19
Updated: 2018-09-29
Packaged: 2019-05-25 06:38:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 14,171
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14971235
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArrowheadProductions/pseuds/ArrowheadProductions
Summary: It has been 12 years since Percy Jackson and friends embarked on his first quest to retrieve Zeus's stolen lightning bolt and about 5 since he'd had any real trouble with the Gods. Percy really thought he was in the clear. When Hera loses the very symbol of Zeus' love for her, their marriage threatens to crumble for good and each Olympian stands in preparation for Civil War. Percy, Grover, and Annabeth understand that if anyone stands a chance at peace, they need to find what Hera lost and restore it before her anniversary with Zeus.





	1. Poseidon Doesn't Know How to Knock

Whoever said life as a demigod got easier was... Okay, nobody ever said that, but if they  _did_ , they'd be rotten liars.

My name is Percy Jackson, and if you've followed me this far, you understand that I've had my fair share of tragedy and unfortunate luck. The translation to that, is that I am constantly being treated like the used napkin that Gods can't seem to stop using to wipe their mouths with. I say 'mouth', because believe it or not, there are demigods and other beings with worse treatment than me. Sure, I've been framed for thievery, forced to hold up the actual sky, been raised for apparent slaughter, kidnapped, memory-wiped, lost tons of dear friends along the way, and thrown into the deepest pits of hell... Okay, I'm going to lose my point if I keep going. I mean, at least I survived that stuff. Whether or not that's actual consolation has been gnawing at me pretty much since age 12, but that's whatever.

I really thought that things would calm down on the off chance that I survived the second Titan war and the initial prophecy about me. Sure, they did, for like, 4 months (which is the equivalent of a few seconds to the all powerful Gods), but then I was thrust back into the mix. From there, it was dealing with Gaia's grumpy ass and then helping to clean up the mess of the Emperors. Don't even get me started on all of that Norse and Egyptian stuff that I've been dragged into.

The point is, it's been about 5 years since my last major world-ending scuffle and I was starting to feel comfortable again. I'm attacked by various monsters in the mortal world on just about a weekly basis, but that keeps me sharp (or as sharp as I can be) and on my toes, like a workout. I really wanted to keep the near death experiences to a minimum. Annabeth and I moved back to New York after finishing college. Yes, I graduated and I managed honors in marine biology. I was shocked like I'd been struck with Zeus' lightning bolt, but she didn't seem surprised, just proud. My mom and her husband, Paul, are expecting their second kid and I've got my fingers crossed for a brother. I'd be cool with another girl if she's half as cool as Estelle, who's going into first grade. I loved my time in California and New Rome, but New York is home and we both had reasons pulling us back that we couldn't resist. 

Annabeth is designing a Greek counterpart to New Rome as an extension of Camp Half-Blood, a place for older demigods to live out their days and go to school, have families, and be safe.

"I call it 'New Athens'. I know, I'm totally ripping off of the Romans with the name, but the rest is all Greek-based. What do you think?" She asked when she showed me the first blueprints.

I don't know the first thing about architecture aside from what has stuck from her. I just know what I think looks good. Everything she does looks good. She's just that great at what she does. You should see what she did with Olympus and Camp. They needed the upgrades.

"Annabeth," I said seriously and she straightened. "This is, without a doubt, your best work."

That earned me some _very_ thoroughly expressed gratitude. 

For the first time in what felt like ever, I saw the possibility of having an actual future. 

If you've heard some of my stories, you know that rarely does my life ever stay  _this_  easy.

I'd say it all started around the reception of Grover's wedding to Juniper. The ceremony had been really nice. Everyone seemed to show up, even though it looked designed to be a small ceremony. I saw a lot of them regularly, but it was still weird seeing everybody all grown up at once. Even some of the Romans showed up, which was a pretty solid example of how we've all been getting along much better. I struggled into a suit and messed up my tie 3 or 4 times before Annabeth grew frustrated just watching me and did it herself. She looked beautiful, of course, and traded her usual wardrobe of jeans and a t-shirt for a bluish-gray floral sundress that brought out her eyes. 

It was held in the North Woods around dusk in the fashion of a small woodland ceremony. Demeter apparently had a lot to do with the decor and enlisted the Hephaestus cabin to create orbs that would hold little balls of fire to light the scene. Artemis assisted in providing natural and beautiful moonlight for the event and Apollo promised not to show up and perform. It was a team effort, I guess. One of Grover's cousins played the reeds to a slowed down version of "Baby" by Justin Bieber and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at that. He does realize that's a breakup song, right?

Grover wore a tuxedo except for the pants, which would have been inappropriate if he weren't a satyr. Juniper was covered in a gown constructed almost entirely of various foliage. Rachel Elizabeth Dare's dress looked that green too and was bashful that she'd worn the same color as the fiery wood nymph. In her defense, usually you're apparently not supposed to wear white to weddings. In this case, it was green. 

I was the best man, which like every role I've ever filled in my short life, I had no idea how to go about. The bachelor party had been a success save for Tyson getting too intense of a sugar rush from the fruit punch we gave him and passing out at one point. He is not an easy guy to catch and it took Frank transforming into a gorilla to have much success. If my baby brother ever gets married, I'll make a note to never take him to Hershey Park for his bachelor party. 

Grover basically openly sobbed when she walked down the aisle, which made every girl at the wedding swoon and me super uncomfortable. I wasn't uncomfortable because he was letting out his emotions at seeing his wife-to-be, but because he started crying  _on my shoulder_ in the middle of the wedding. 

"She's just so beautiful!" He bleated.

"Yeah, but you need to marry her, okay?" I said. 

Lou Ellen got caught trying to sneak a bear into camp in replacement for an actual ring bearer, but was stopped by Chiron just in the knick of time.

Their vows were really beautiful and I listened to them too, which is telling, because Gods, the ceremony was long. It's like they forgot that half of their audience was a bunch of people with ADHD, because I could see the likes of Annabeth, Thalia, and Nico getting antsy from their seats too. The other satyrs and woodland creatures seemed utterly touched by every single aspect of it though. It included some odd offering/dance ritual that I didn't understand. Someone made a comment about how I should have been wearing a kilt, which everyone got a kick out of. I was not wearing a skirt. 

Their kiss was weird, because they were definitely tonguing it without abandon, something that made everyone feel a little awkward afterwards. 

I'd been preparing my toast pretty much since Grover asked me to be his best man and read it regularly to Annabeth. I wasn't usually a planner or anal about things like this, but I really didn't want to mess this up. I think Grover might have cried more during my speech than he did when he saw Juniper walk down the aisle. 

They cut the cake, which was a gross vegan concoction that definitely had bits of recyclables mixed in there. Needless to say, I was glad I ate before I came. Tyson was pretty heartbroken that he didn't. 

Travis gagged. "I think some tin can just scraped against my esophagus." 

Katie Gardener frowned. "That's because you don't get veganism."

"Yeah, we don't do crossfit either, Katie." Connor sighed. "Get used to it."

Mr. D provided the wine, which was the only beverage allowed because he was in charge of the satyrs and all that. I don't really drink, maybe because Gabe drank so much that the idea of alcohol still repulsed me, but wine is just gross.

"Peter Johnson, what in the name of Hades do you think you're doing?" He asked while I tried to dump my glass in a nearby shrub. One of Juniper's dryad friends didn't appreciate my action either from the looks of it. I was cornered.

"Uh, sharing?"

He rolled his eyes. "24 years old and still just as eloquent as ever. Drink. If I can't, you will."

I didn't want to ruin the mood of the festivities by being blown up, so I complied and sucked down a glass. 

Clarisse caught the bouquet, which she was excited about until it exploded upon contact thanks to a trick rigged by the Stolls. When she chased after them, enraged and covered in pink paint, it really felt like old times. Chris Rodriguez seemed relieved by the distraction, though he'd never admit it. Nico caught the garter, because it landed in his wine glass. I thought  _I_ blushed when I got embarrassed, but I thought he was going to burst into flames. Will only fanned the potential flames by wiggling his eyebrows suggestively when Thalia implied that Nico would have to put the garter on Will later. 

"I told you to aim for Annabeth." Grover mumbled to Juniper.

She shrugged. "I tried! What happened to you trying for Percy?"

"It bounced off of Percy's head and into Nico's drink." 

"Why were you aiming for us?" I asked when I came up behind them, causing Grover to jump about 3 feet in the air out of surprise. 

He whirled around, tight and awkward. "Percy! Hey! Oh, just... Just for some good old fashioned fun."

I narrowed my eyes at him and then looked to Juniper, who was always a lot more candid. Before I could get an answer from them, everyone rooted for it to be time for the first dance of the bride and the groom. Luckily, they'd gotten a DJ, because I wasn't sure I could stand hearing the mashup of Taylor Swift if it were played on the reeds. You could only take so much of the reeds.

I gotta say, for a guy who's seen his fair share of magic and mysticism, it looked pretty magical out.

I looked over to Annabeth, who was across the venue laughing pretty intensely with her brother Malcolm over something unknown to me. If I had to guess, it was the way Grover bleated out the words to "Crazier" by Taylor Swift. After a moment, she noticed my gaze and winked at me with a smugness that used to annoy me, but now caused my heart to flutter. I'm not a total idiot and not in the mood to start another Trojan War, but I swear she's prettier than any Goddess I've ever seen. And yes, I've met the Goddess of love and beauty. 

"Really does make you think, doesn't it?" Chiron mused.

I jumped, not even realizing he was standing there in all his half-horse glory. To his credit, he did have a button up and a little red bow-tie on to match the theme of high class. 

"Oh, hey." I said.

"You kids grow up fast." He smiled. "With everything you two are doing for camp, you're providing the chance of a real future here for demigods and legacies. That couldn't be said about previous generations."

"It's all Annabeth." I smiled. "She's the architect."

"You're a team." He settled on. "A very proficient one, might I add."

"She tells me what to do and I do it." I shrugged. "I don't know anything about building stuff or what looks good."

"But you're giving campers hope." He smiled.

I liked to think of it that way too.

Other couples eventually joined in and started slow-dancing when the song changed to "She Will Be Loved" by Maroon 5. This, I could deal with. Nico and Will looked like day and night with Nico dressed entirely in black and Will dressed in a light tan suit. They both looked immeasurably happy, which was something they, especially Nico, really deserved. Leo twirled Calypso around and made her laugh by dipping her dramatically. Frank and Hazel weren't really together anymore, but still remained best friends. I, personally, think they'll get back together someday, but that they need to grow up a little bit first. They danced though, which was nice to see. Piper danced with Ellis Wakefield, a son of Ares, which was interesting because it sort of repeats the whole Aprhodite/Ares thing if they ever decide to date. Ever since Jason, she was never quick to jump into anything. She dated a mortal or two since his death, but nothing serious. Annabeth says she's "swearing off boys" in the meantime to find herself. I don't blame her. 

Hands circled around my waist from behind and a face pressed in between my shoulder blades. I leaned into the touch. 

"Wanna dance?" I asked.

"I thought you'd never ask." She mused and I turned around to wrap an arm around Annabeth's waist and to take her hand. Her other hand draped across my shoulder and played with the hair at the base of my neck. I did my best to tame it in the name of the wedding, but it never liked to listen to me. She didn't seem to mind. We, like many of the other couples, fell into a comfortable sway. The air felt soft and the mood seemed light. Everything felt okay. 

"Grover picked the corniest playlist known to God, demigod, or man." I said and Annabeth laughed.

"What did you expect?"

"This." I gestured to everyone all around us, having a good time. "And I wouldn't change any of it."

"Me neither." She agreed and rested her forehead against my chin. I kissed her hair. 

I looked over to my best friend and his new bride. I've never seen him so happy and I've seen him the day he got that new Jesse McCartney album and found Pan. He was by my side when we took down Kronos. He was there for me through everything. I can be kind of thick-skulled sometimes, but even I could see the love that flowed through him for Juniper. I still didn't dare think about how it worked, but they were going to have a bunch of kids and start a new generation. He was going to be their heroic father that did what no other satyr had done. He was going to be amazing. 

The rest of the evening went pretty much as expected. The satyrs and dryads like to party until the sun rises, as per tradition, and the drunk demigods sure as Hades weren't going to stop them. Thalia and Reyna had a contest shotgunning beers somebody smuggled in (they tied), Tyson literally drank an entire keg that somebody else smuggled in (and didn't feel the least bit drunk), Piper did shots with the Stoll brothers because she lost a dare with Rachel (never bet against the Oracle), and Will drunkenly lead a karaoke battle. I lost so horribly to Leo, who had a shockingly decent voice? 

When everyone became consumed with drunkenly catching the bear that Lou Ellen and the Stoll brothers "accidentally" let loose, Annabeth and I took that as our cue to sneak off. We walked, fingers laced, filling the space of early morning with idle and tipsy chatter. She wore my suit jacket, because even in the early summer heat, it always got chillier when it was darkest. We thought we'd been slick in escaping the annoying drunk goodbyes of our friends, reasoning we'd see them at breakfast in the morning and share hangover stories, but Malcolm could be heard distantly calling about how Annabeth certainly wouldn't be in the Athena cabin the next morning. 

Those Athena kids always seemed to be right.

She looked at me through her long lashes, a knowing smile crossing her alcohol-flushed cheeks before wrapping her arms around my neck and kissing me with delicious intent. I placed my hands on her hips and backed her up until she was pressed against the door of Cabin 3.

Construction on New Athens was still underway and the very last part they were doing were the homes, specifically, the home Annabeth purposely set aside for us. In the meantime, we'd been staying in our respective cabins at camp and worked as counselors in our spare time. It was weird, because we went from living together since our sophomore year of college (freshman had to do the dorm thing) to bunking with our siblings again. This took some adjusting, but most of the time I had Cabin 3 to myself, which made every stolen rendezvous reminiscent to our high school days when getting to second base without interruption was an accomplishment.

Still, I hadn't had  _alone_ time with Annabeth much lately thanks to how busy we've been with leading camp, construction of New Athens, and any calls the mortal world made. So, we were both seizing this moment while we had the opportunity. 

She tilted her head against the door, allowing me a sliver of access of her glorious neck. She muttered something about threatening me not to give her a hickey, but her grip on my hair tightened every time I nipped at her, her breathing hitched. My hands started traveling upwards on her long smooth legs, causing her dress to ride up. She batted my hands away and chuckled against my neck.

"Wait until we get inside, you animal."

I smiled down at her before throwing her over my shoulder, earning a squeal and her playfully punching my back and pinching my ass out of protest. I made a b-line straight for my bed a dropped her in the center of it, letting her bounce from the impact. She laughed and stretched out as she had many times, but my heart clenched like it was the first time I'd ever seen her like this.

She stared at me appreciatively, because in her defense, I don't dress up that often, so this was one of the few occasions she got to see me in a suit. The way she looked at me made me blush.

"Hmm." She looked up at my eyes again, hers sparkling with amusement. "You should wear ties more often."

"Why's that?" I asked, still standing over her.

"So, I can do this:" Faster than lightning, she lunged forward and grabbed me by the hanging tie and yanked it to pull me down on top of her. Just in the last second, I was able to stick my arms out on either side of her to avoid crushing her. She reached up and kissed me, this time sweeter, and undid my tie in the blink of an eye. Thank Gods she did, because I had pretty much all but made my peace that it was going to have to stay on forever. 

She threw the garment in a direction I wasn't paying attention to and started immediately working on untucking and then unbuttoning my shirt and pants. A soft groan of frustration came when she only got about halfway down the line of buttons before I slipped down so they were just out of her reach. I unhooked and took off her shoes and let them fall to the floor with a clunk. I'd learned better than to leave her shoes on from our freshman year of college when she accidentally kicked me in the back of the head when I was under the covers.

"That happened _one_ time." She groaned.

"You gave me a concussion!" I protested while I peppered kisses up her legs. 

She reached down to run a hand through my hair over the spot she'd kicked me like that would help now. At the time, we got me some ambrosia and I was fine, but it was a good laugh now. Very rarely do I have material to tease Annabeth over and I like to stock up my moments. Besides, it always stroked my ego that I literally made her spasm.

I continued my ascent until I heard the awkward clearing of a throat from across the room.

There my father was, standing on the porch that led to the sea, arms cross and looking anywhere but at his son, whose shirt was half unbuttoned, pants were unzipped, face was beat red, and most damningly? His head was currently under the dress of the daughter of Athena, whose face was also as red as a tomato. Annabeth leaped away from me like she just found out I had an infectious disease and I felt like I was going to throw up. 

The mood was sufficiently ruined. 

"Uh, sorry to interrupt." He mumbled and knowing Poseidon, he was genuine. When we had sex for the very first time and then Aphrodite went and told everybody, Poseidon made this big deal out of it. He called a meeting underwater and dedicated a full dinner party for me to commemorate the occasion. So, I've wanted to die more than this moment, if you're wondering. Fish and mer-people were swimming alongside me to congratulate me on losing my virginity. It was awful. Annabeth, meanwhile, had been given an 8 hour lecture by her mother on safety, making *good* choices, and how true connections are formed mentally and not through specific parts of our anatomy. 

"Dad, what's up?" I tried to act like he didn't just walk in on us about to go at it like rabbits. Annabeth sort of looked like she wanted to kick me upside the head and have it _not_ be an accident. I swore I locked the door, but I couldn't exactly lock the ocean or prevent Godly entrance.

"Something's happening." He sighed. "Another war is not far in the distance."

I straightened and exchanged a concerned look with Annabeth. 

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"Zeus and Hera are separating." His voice was like steel. "And we must all pick a side."


	2. 12 Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Gods, as usual, are petty.

Here's the thing about the Gods: they're all super overdramatic. 

If you go back in history, you'll find that they tend to fight over THE dumbest stuff. Yeah, the human world doesn't have a great track record when it comes to preserving harmony, but the Gods have literally started wars over apples. They're all pretty stubborn in their own special way. Athena is incredibly prideful, Ares is super arrogant, Dionysus is very snooty, Zeus is just plain stubborn in every meaning of it... You get the point. I can't say I'm ever  _too_  shocked when I hear about the Gods getting into a scuffle, particularly Zeus and Hera. He cheats on her every day of the week. She knows about it, believe me. The poor souls that are on the other side of the affair are the ones to suffer and if they have kids, them too. 

Yeah, I know. Real fair.

But she's been cheated on for eons and they've managed to stay together still. Whatever it is, I've never seen Poseidon look so grim. Seriously, he's the chill God too. I'm not just saying that because he's my dad. Usually, his visits consist of fishing (returning the fish after) and talking shit on the other Gods and Goddesses. Instead, he stood overlooking the water at the end of the pier, eyes trained on the horizon. 

"What do you mean they're separating?" I asked.

"Olympus is falling." He said quietly. "Their fights have destroyed everything except for their individual chambers."

I could feel Annabeth stiffen alongside me. I knew she wouldn't say anything, because there were larger things at stake here, but I knew she was gut-wrenched that all of her hard work was crumbled just that easily. I remembered how much time she put into making every little detail perfect. The results were more than what they deserved in my opinion. Especially Aphrodite, who gave her the most trouble about her desired "aesthetic" for her throne. I didn't know how to make her feel better, but then I suppose when the Gods are trying to rip apart the universe out of rage, you aren't supposed to feel better.

"They don't even share a bed?" I blurted out. "How are we surprised they're breaking up?"

Annabeth nudged me in the ribs. And by nudged, I mean her elbows are pointy and could make a weaker person pass out upon impact. 

"The chambers are more of a "principle of the matter" thing." She said. "To honor both of them. Usually, they house guests in Hera's."

"Like who? You know what? Don't answer. I already know Hercules visits."

"If all goes as I believe it will tonight, there won't even be an Olympus to visit." Poseidon said

"What's tonight?"

"They called a quorum to discuss separation and divorce before splitting everything down the middle into war."

"Oh, so there's hope." I tried.

"It's all just procedural. They won't resolve anything tonight. War is coming."

"Why even bother with a quorum then? Why not just dive right into attacking each other. I'm assuming everyone knows their sides already."

"It's a common tactic for war." Annabeth sighed. "Neither of them can just attack the other without at least making it seem like either of them are open to peaceful negotiations. That will only cause the other side to be able to play the victim card and make the attacker into the villain. The victim gets sympathy and thus, all of the allies. They did the same thing in the Trojan War." 

"So, they're bullshitting, is what you're saying."

"Pretty much." She said and Poseidon nodded too.

"You're right about the divisions already being decided, Percy." He said. "Everyone knows where they align now."

"I assume my mother is with Zeus." Annabeth said, arms crossed.

"Indeed." Poseidon said.

I can't tell whether or not she's hoping for this move. I should preface by saying that Annabeth and Hera have never really gotten along. And by that, I mean Annabeth thinks Hera is scornful and cruel while Hera thinks Annabeth is hubristic and stubborn. Both probably are a little true, but for the sake of my remaining lifelong happiness (regardless of how short) I'm siding with Annabeth. I'm not a big fan of Hera either. It's hard to like someone that stripped away your memories without asking and sent you to be raised by wolves for a few months.

Because I'm not mean and unforgiving like certain immortal and all-powerful beings I know, I'm going to simplify the over-complicated breakdown that my father gave me. I think I about cover the basics of where and why everybody stands where they do:

 

**TEAM ZEUS**

Athena- She's his brain baby and nothing is changing that.

Demeter- What's more awkward than being on the same side as your ex? Being on the same side as your ex's new ex that hates you for sleeping with her ex. 

Artemis- Hera once tried to rip her ears off or something and tried to keep her from being born. 

Apollo- Literally just doing whatever his twin is doing.

Hermes- Spoiler alert: Hera really should have been nicer to Zeus' other kids.

 

**TEAM HERA**

Ares- Don't let the macho facade fool you... He's a mama's boy.

Aphrodite- Despite being Zeus' daughter and liking drama and all of that, an end of the universe = end of love. 

Dionysus- I'm convinced Hera bribed him with wine.

Hephaestus- Yeah, I know, but he and Hera left off on a pretty decent note after he saved her and she promised to never call him ugly ever again... Such *mom goals*

 

**TEAM MINDING THEIR OWN FUCKING BUSINESS**

Hades- He's chilling in the underworld, which is the only place safe from all of this nonsense.

Hestia- The sanest person in the family.

 

"That makes Hera's side pretty weak then." I said. "7 to 5."

"It will not be 7 to 5." Poseidon said quietly.

I was confused and thought I'd miscounted. "You make 7."

"I do not."

I looked over to Annabeth, who was several steps ahead of me, clearly already in the loop. Finally, it dawned on me what he was saying.

"You're with Hera?"

There was a pause. "Yes."

"But..." This didn't make any sense. Zeus is his brother... And okay, Hera is kind of his sister too. Damn, I really do a lot better not thinking of all the Godly inbreeding that happens. Just a friendly reminder that Gods don't have genetics or blood or anything like that so demigods that aren't born from the same parent aren't considered "related". I just really need you all to get that through your heads. 

Right now.

Anyway, Zeus, Poseidon and Hades make up the Big Three. They fight and they're all different, but they've always been looked at as a team within a team. 

"Are you dating her or something?"

His eyes flared up. "Gods no!"

I wanted to make a comment about how my question wasn't that ridiculous given the romantic track records of the Greek Gods, but I left it alone. 

"Zeus must have really done something bad for you to side with Hera." I said. 

"He did." He said. "He called for the separation."

I think Annabeth and I's eyes both almost flew out of their respective sockets at that. I mentioned before that Zeus has cheated on Hera a lot. If you're wondering what the actual number is, that's physically impossible to come up with. I've probably seen less women in passing than Zeus has hooked up with. Keep in mind, I grew up in New York City. That's wild, right? I'm not envious either. Those stories rarely work out too well for either respective party and also, I'm quite satisfied with one girl. The thing is, neither Annabeth or me or anyone with a functioning brain would ever think it would be Zeus to call for a divorce. 

"Wait, Zeus is the one wanting to separate?" I asked.

"Yes."

"But..." Now Annabeth spluttered a little. "That's... Is it another woman?"

"No." He said. "It involves a sacred bond they made on their wedding night."

I wrinkled my nose. "Ew."

"Not like that." Poseidon sighed. "Though the situation is grossly bleak."

"I can't believe this." Annabeth said. "I wonder what she did."

"It is not worthy of destroying the world as we know it over." He said. "And now Hera is infuriated that he is the one breaking their marriage up after everything she forgave him for. So, she is retaliating this war with everything she's got."

"And this is all being decided tonight?" 

"Yes, I came to warn you as soon as I could." 

"This is as soon as you could?" I asked.

"There have been a lot of fights." He said. "I have been working in overdrive to keep them from the mortal world. This isn't going to end well."

"It isn't starting very well either, dad." 

"This is going to divide everyone and I do mean everyone." He continued and wouldn't look at either of us. "God, immortal, demigod, man, creature... Everything is going to have to pick its place in this war. It will tear families and friends apart. It could go on forever."

"There's got to be something we can do." Annabeth, Gods love her, is always jumping into a plan.

It might sound like someone grasping for straws and maybe it is, since who are we to believe we can change fate and fix the Gods? Then again, it's never stopped us from trying before. While part of me wanted to succumb to this and just enjoy the last peaceful moments I'd likely ever have in bed or something,  I couldn't stop thinking about my mom, Paul, baby Estelle, the new baby on the way... They all stood to suffer for something they weren't even a part of. Hell, all of us did. Everyone's families and friends were suddenly at risk. 

"Take us to the quorum." I said and I didn't really know what my course of action here was. I was pretty exhausted and terrified right now. I wasn't hankering to crashing some world-ending meeting. I didn't really have a choice either. "Even if they don't all like us, they trust us. Maybe I can talk to them and we can work something out?"

"Percy..."

"Look, we've got nothing else to lose." I said. "We either go to war or we don't. We have to try something. I'd rather not have all of my loved ones rip each other apart in the end of the world. Let me talk to Zeus and Hera."

All right, I know I'm not a relationship expert. Just because I'm with Annabeth doesn't really mean I get how it happened. Even so, I was not smooth. I know this. I didn't exactly win her over instantly with my good looks and charisma. It was a slow build of her eventually realizing that she (for whatever reason) actually really loves me. I'm not in a position to be counseling anyone on how to make their love life better, let alone the Gods. Might I add that Hera is the Goddess of Marriage? 

"I agree." Annabeth said. "We can't take this lying down."

He eyed us both carefully before nodding. "Very well."

He let Annabeth and I change, which was nice, because I was more than tired of being in that stuffy suit and I had a feeling she was itching to get back into her t-shirt and shorts combo too. She threw a pair of running shorts on and one of my camp t-shirts, even though she's had a secure stash of her own clothes in my cabin for years. I didn't mind, because seeing her in an oversized t-shirt is cute even when we're all probably about to die soon. I try to take stock of the little things in moments of crisis. Also, the ADHD kinda forces me to do that.

Her face is ridden with worry and I've never seen her more focused on putting shoes on before. It felt dangerously commonplace: us, performing mundane and simple tasks before running off to throw our lives on the line yet again. It's been a solid 5 years since we've faced real, unknown danger. I can't help but dread that this is going to make up for all of them. Before, we were always fighting Titans, Mother Earth, monsters. This time, we might be fighting our parents. 

I've always been really good at saying the right thing in times of peril.

"Well, this sucks." I said as I pulled a t-shirt over my head.

Just kidding.

She nodded emphatically, because how else do you sum all of this up? I noticed she packed her Yankees cap, whether it be out of natural instinct or because she thought it would be genuinely useful, I didn't know. Knowing her, she probably was already creating some kind of plan of escape if the Gods immediately respond negatively to our pleas of peace. 

"You okay?" I asked weakly. 

She let out a breathy little laugh and finally looked over at me. "No. You?"

"Nah." I reached into the pocket of my jeans to feel Riptide. 

She stood up straight and walked over to me to hook her arms around my waist. In the amber lighting of my bedside lamp, shadows were cast on her face, but it added such definition that it was like she was glowing. Her eyes were stormy and serious, but her arms held me firmly to her. I returned the embrace by squeezing her to me too. I never took my eyes off of her while she stared through me, her thumb absently stroked the small of my back- the place where my Achilles spot used to be. 

"This is going to destroy camp if we let this get out, Percy." She said finally. "You know that right?"

She was right. I hated it, but she was. Most would take the sides of their Godly parent, of course, and when it comes to their parents, demigods got very protective and defensive. They tend to hold the same grievances with their children as their parents do. For example, Aphrodite children and Hephaestus children have a tendency to butt heads. Some of that is definitely rooted in the tumultuous relationship between Aphrodite and Hephaestus. There are several other rivalries like that. Then, there was the people that were bitter against their parents and would choose the opposite. That would create a divide amongst siblings. A war would spark everybody against each other. 

I didn't know what to say other than to nod and lean forward to kiss her forehead.

I felt her relax against me by a fraction. While my lips were still pressed to her forehead, she mumbled something else.

"I meant it, you know." She whispered.

I shifted so I was looking down into her glassy gray eyes. She looked soft, but stern. She was adamant to get her point across. 

"What's that?" I asked and cupped her cheek.

"What I said all those years ago- when we were 12." She leaned into my hand.

"You said a lot of things back then." I teased.

She smiled, but it was still sad. "The Gods are lining up to fight each other and our parents are on opposite sides. I told you that if that were to ever happen, that none of it mattered, because I'd fight alongside you."

"Because I'm your friend."

"Yes, Seaweed Brain," Even 12 years later, that smug look on her face hasn't changed. "And because I love you."

"I love you too and I'd follow you anywhere." I raised my other hand so that it cupped her other cheek and I kissed her like it might be the final time. "We're a package deal."

I just really hoped it wouldn't come to us against the Gods. If it did, we would go down together. There was some solace in that in a warped way. I'd been loosely picturing a future for us since fairly early into our relationship when I was at Camp Jupiter. I got a taste of the idea that demigods didn't have to die and wander the world hopeless when they grew up. They could go to school, have jobs, get married, raise a family... The possibilities could be endless for us. Even when we were in the belly of Tartarus, I still clung to hope that we would be together and we'd earned a happy ending. For the past 5 years, I was beginning to be convinced that I was right.

Now? It's open-ended again. But not the imaginative open-ended questions where all you have to do is explain yourself. It's more open-ended in the sense that we have about 2 minutes to figure out the exact wording needed. The odds are slim.

* * *

 

Olympus, as my father mentioned, was pretty much dust now. I wasn't going to reiterate that in front of Annabeth. She's incredible at compartmentalizing and would still find it in her to be enraged over that while war was brewing. Instead of holding quorum on Mt. Olympus, the Gods decided to hold it at the apparent next best place. You would probably think: what is the grandest castle or villa in the world? What's a place divine enough for the Gods? The Forbidden City? The Taj Mahal? Buckingham Palace? 

I want you to back track on all of those thoughts and take the expectations down a notch. And by that, I mean I want you to drop them to the fucking floor.

"Yankee stadium?" I said it like it was the plague and as a Mets fan, it is. 

"They're on the road and we wanted a large, open space." He said, clearly unfazed by my disgust. "In case any large objects go flying. It makes cleanup easier."

"Uh, last I checked, Citi Field is open-dome too."

"Percy, we're the Gods, we deserve to have some standards."

Annabeth snickered as we followed Poseidon through the locker rooms, which would eventually lead upstairs to the dugout and then the field. Her Yankees invisibility cap has come in handy more times than not, and she didn't have the Mets emblem on there for a reason.

The reason is, she likes the showboats. I mean, the Yankees.

I stuck my tongue out at her and she rolled her eyes. We kept walking to mostly silence outside of the echoes our sneakers made while we walked. Soon, we rose through the dugout and had a full view of the field. It looked begrudgingly beautiful from where were standing. In the middle of the expansive field, there was a long table that looked more than out of place. Rarely do people have business meetings in the middle of a baseball field. Each of the Gods were larger than life and clearly waiting for Poseidon to begin. It was easy to notice that each God was placed on the respective side of who they were standing with. Hades and Hestia were nowhere to be found and I still think they're wiser for it. A murmur from Hermes (he's always been nosy) mentioned me and suddenly all of them were looking my way in confusion. I made a point of looking everywhere else but at them if I could manage. The lights were lit and the multi-colored flags whipped through the air in contrast to the black night sky. There wasn't a single star in sight nor was the moon shining. Advertisements were splashed everywhere and I'd be remiss to say that some of the hotdog signs didn't remind me how hungry I was. 

Annabeth glared at me. "Really? You're hungry, now?"

"I can't control it! I wish we could have eaten out before we came."

"Isn't that what I walked in on earlier?" Poseidon quipped and I think I almost choked on my tongue. Annabeth was so red she looked like she might explode, but neither of us had the right environment to really react to that joke and were instead addressed by Zeus. Athena shot us a confused glance while Aphrodite winked. I really just hoped this was a coincidence and that nobody knew what Poseidon was joking about. He didn't exactly whisper it, so I'm sure his booming voice carried.

"What is the meaning behind this, Brother?" Zeus demanded without so much as looking at us.

"What? The wimp saves Olympus once or twice and he gets a hall pass to drop in whenever?" Ares crossed his arms. The dude was never happy to see me. 

"He did defeat you in battle, so what does that make you?" Poseidon challenged.

"He got lucky." 

"You disappoint me, son." Zeus glared at Ares, clearly forgetting about that situation. Funnily enough, conspiring with Luke didn't upset him. Losing to me? That was the real last straw.

"I don't care." 

"What is my daughter doing here?" Athena asked.

"Yeah, I didn't realize we could bring dates!" Aphrodite said. 

"That's not what I meant."

"Who  _else_  could you possibly be sleeping with?" Hephaestus retorted.

Honestly? That question could easily apply to most of the Gods. 

"Not you." Aphrodite quipped and Ares tilted his head back to cackle. 

"I asked a question." Zeus banged his fist on the table. It cracked right down the middle like when lightning strikes a tree. Thunder rolled into the distance and I wondered what poor neighborhood was about to get the thunderstorm of a lifetime. Then, I realized it was probably going to be us if we didn't act soon.

"I am against this war and I cannot be the only one." Poseidon said. "I bring my son and Athena's daughter as demigod representatives who seek peace."

I swear, Ares sneered. He was on Hera's side, but he sure as Hades wanted a war. It's been a slow 5 years for him. He's had to tide himself over with mortal affairs.

"And why should we care what the demigods say?" Mr. D asked. 

"I mean, I'd rather not have my kids die." Apollo said. "They're cool and stuff."

Wow, that should have gone on a Christmas card it was so sweet. 

"Ever the poet, aren't you, bastard-child?" Hera seethed.

"Do not speak to him that way!" Artemis snapped.

She ignored her. "Incidentally, I would also rather not go to war, but I am only backing down if that hypocritical pig of a Thunder God apologizes."

"Ah, but I am not the one in the wrong here, so I will not be apologizing and I will never back down after you have disgraced and disrespected me."

"Blasphemy!" She howled. "After all of the gracious forgiveness I've offered you over the years."

"It's not so gracious if you keep  _throwing_  it into my face each time we fight! You wonder why I might not want to spend all of my time with you."

Hera clutched her physical and metaphorical pearls.

"Well, that was douchey." I said a  _little_  louder than I intended to. Annabeth elbowed me so hard that it knocked the breath out of me a little. It was likely for the better since the glares Zeus' side gave me would have knocked it out of me anyway. 

Zeus' eyes were like fire on me. "You dare insult me,  _demigod_? When you are merely no more than an uninvited guest?"

There was a time when I sent Medusa's head to Mt. Olympus in response to being accused of thievery I didn't commit. If I could, I'd do it again except maybe I'd include Medusa's sisters too. Believe it or not, I was at least a little God-fearing back then. Now? I've been through way too much to be all that scared of dying. The only reason I restrained myself at all was because I didn't want anything to happen to Annabeth. 

"I'm just saying, you can't blame the other person because  _you_  cheated. That doesn't make you look like the good guy at all."

Quiet murmurs spread across the table and Zeus' eyes flickered towards them. His hardened gaze returned momentarily.

"So, the demigods side with her? Is that how you treat your king?"

I was really proud of myself for not rolling my eyes here. My dad and Annabeth were watching me like they were waiting for me to do something stupid like that. Athena's eyes were glued to Annabeth. It was easy to see her realization that her daughter would not be supporting the choice that she made in this one. It was difficult to decipher how much that upset her. Right then, it seemed like she just wanted me to burst into flames. 

"No." I said. 

"You're  _no_  king!" Hera snarled at her husband. She was known for her powerful rage. I'm not sure why he looked so shocked by it. It's not like they've been married for all of eternity.

"I'm not with him either!" I quickly said. "We don't want to fight. Don't you guys see that this could ruin lives? Humans, demigods, creatures, Gods... You name it. None of us want to see our homes and loved ones destroyed."

"Tough shit, punk." Ares said.

I tried to tamper the burning anger inside of me.

"For what she did, there deserves to be consequences." Athena said stiffly, though she wasn't gung-ho like her brother was. She always looked like she was pondering a million different possibilities and conclusions. Her eyes occasionally met Annabeth's in annoyance that her daughter wasn't seeing this picture. 

"What did she do?"

"NOTHING!" Hera barked.

"EVERYTHING!" Zeus shouted at the same time.

"Anyone?" I asked. 

Poseidon looked withered, like he'd been caught in the middle of many fights recently. It reminded me of when Nico and Will got into dumb arguments and they would start pulling the "Percy, tell Nico ___" or "Percy, tell Will ___". It was exhausting being in the middle of a meaningless fight over the last bagel let alone a marriage being broken apart. He wasn't kidding about the melodramatics of this event. There was no negotiations- just glitz and glam. Who could pull the most sympathy and support?

Mr. D sighed. "Hera and Zeus were in a fight, because Zeus was jealous of all of the time Hera was spending offsite in the mortal world-"

"-The divorce rate is higher than ever!" She interjected. "50% are calling it quits so I have work to do, because I have a life outside of listening to him moan and groan about leading all day."

"You never listen! All you do is find ways to throw my past mistakes in my face."

"Slander! They're not past-indiscretions when they happened a few weeks ago."

"... Anyway," Mr. D continued. "On earth, Hera gave away the gift Zeus presented her on their wedding night, which was supposed to solidify the bond between them forever, and now Zeus feels she no longer respects their marriage or their love. Now, did that give you a proper summary?"

"For the last time, I did  _not_  give it away. It was stolen." She said.

"How?" He demanded. "The mortals would only see it in its natural form; nothing important. And you should have been able to sense it was missing."

"That's it?" I asked.

"What is it?" Annabeth asked at the same time.

Hera stiffened. "A feather."

I looked between the two of them as they clearly remembered the night. Neither seemed particularly tickled by the memories, but Hera was clearly sad behind the angry facade she was putting up. Zeus, on the other hand, just looked pissed and like he didn't know how to express himself. Meanwhile, I couldn't seem to get over the fact that all of this was over a feather. I really should have expected this, right?

"A feather." I repeated.

"Yes. The feather from the cuckoo bird that I turned into in order to court her. It is meaningless to anyone except her and she claims it stolen." He said. "And she rids herself of it then tries to play the victim in the end. Typical."

"You refuse to listen to any logic, despite claiming to be the wisest being ever created."

"You call me a hypocrite, but you are careless and cruel. A week before our anniversary, as well. You simply want the throne to yourself. This would not be the first time you've rebelled."

Hephaestus straightened, remembering saving his mom from chaos. 

"You know nothing about me if you believe any of that, you blithering fool. I will make you regret those words."

It sounded like they were really about to break the universe in half over a feather. Also, what kind of wedding gift is a feather? I'm not the best with gift-giving, but I think Annabeth would agree that I've always done better than that.

"So, what if we find it?" I asked and Annabeth could already see where I was starting to go with this. "And prove that it was stolen?"

Everyone looked at each other in question. Had they really not considered the option of looking for the feather? Or considering Hera's claims about it being stolen. The lightning bolt was stolen from Zeus all those years ago and that was just for some elaborate scheme to break the Olympians up. Who was to say this was going to be any different? It really annoyed me that our parents were this easily set off and that we had to keep cleaning up the messes, but I liked living enough to give it another go.

"Find the feather?" Hermes laughed a little. "That's like looking for a needle in a haystack!"

"We've tracked stuff down across the country before." Annabeth said. "And at 12, for that matter."

"Yeah, we can drive now." I'm not sure why this felt like pertinent information, but it did.

Poseidon raised an eyebrow at us in curiosity. "Interesting, isn't it, Brother?"

Zeus glowered. "They won't find it."

"Is that you admitting to taking it?" Hera shot.

"It looks like a  _feather_ and you've been all across the world. How are they supposed to find it?" Zeus said it like now it was dumb to talk about. Newsflash, this conversation was pretty stupid from the beginning. 

"You might as well give us a shot. If you don't, that isn't going to look very agreeable or negotiable, is it?" I taunted.

He frowned and Annabeth lit up. "Exactly, Lord Zeus. If you don't accept our assistance in this matter and simply want to dive into war, I doubt it'll make you seem favorable."

"They have a point, Father." Athena said. "If they can find it and avoid war altogether, that is most preferable, is it not?"

He scratched his beard and grumbled something under his breath about "stupid demigods" before reluctantly agreeing. "You have one week. Until the clock strikes midnight on our anniversary." 

"I will only relent, even if the demigods find it and prove my innocence, if you publicly apologize and admit you were brash and wrong." Hera said.

His stare was cold, but his laugh was real. "I will allow it to be recorded if they prove this is stolen, Hera. If it is not, we must settle our differences in an alternative fashion."

"I anticipate it."

They shook on it. It was awfully formal considering the rest of the meeting was a verbal bloodbath soaked with terrible odds.

"You have signed up for a nearly impossible task, Percy." Poseidon said. 

"I don't really see any other options, do you?"

He didn't, but I could tell his faith in all of this was thin. "You will face powerful adversaries."

"You think it was stolen, right?" Annabeth asked. 

"I do." He said.

"... Any hints? We're kind of starting from scratch here."

He looked in the direction of Apollo, which was weird before looking back at me. "I'd visit your friend, the Oracle, if I were you two. And on this quest, I'd bring an old friend as your third companion, assuming you choose Annabeth as your second."

I laced my fingers in Annabeth's and nodded. 

"This is great." Aphrodite clasped her hands. "They're either going to have raucous makeup sex or breakup sex."

"It is good to know you absorbed the important parts of the meeting." Athena sighed.

"I'm sure your daughter will get laid too."

Athena flared, but luckily, Zeus snapped his fingers and in that instant, all of the Gods disappeared in the blink of an eye. The table went with them as did all of the gigantic chairs. It was just Annabeth and I holding hands in the middle of Yankee stadium in the middle of the night. 

"That... Kind of went as expected, right?" I said after a stunned moment of silence.

"Oh yeah." She said. "World is in danger, you mouthed off to the supreme leaders of the universe, danger is our problem, it's over something minute, and now we're stranded with terrible odds and a lot of pressure."

"Back to the real world." I said. "Where do we start?"

"Sleep. We're no good to anyone like this." She yawned. "We'll go see Rachel tomorrow morning."

"Let's get hot dogs or something too. I'm still starving."

She sighed, but squeezed my hand. "You're incorrigible." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've got no bad blood against either the Mets or the Yankees, by the way. I just always pictured Percy and Annabeth would be rooting for opposing teams in the case of baseball.


	3. I Give Love Advice to the Goddess of Marriage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The demigods prepare to set off on their newest quest to hopefully save the world from tearing apart.

Somebody once told me that things always look better in the morning. 

That person has clearly never had impending armageddon resting on whether or not they retrieve a feather and prove a Goddess' innocence. Last night, I was somewhat riding on the high that there was any chance at all, but when I woke up and the weight of all eternity settled on me, I felt 16 again. 

Annabeth was awake before me, sitting up in bed with her laptop on her knees. Her hair was in disarray (though knowing my track record, I doubt mine was any more impressive) and her eyes were deeply set with exhaustion, but sharp with determination. My t-shirt slumped off her one shoulder and she bit distractedly down on her lip.

She looked beautiful.

I stirred, to indicate that I was joining the waking world, but she didn't shift her gaze in the slightest from her task at hand. Instead, she reached over and ran a hand down from my head to my back like I was a cat that needed a quota of attention to be filled. And maybe I am, because I moved so my head rested against her stomach so I could get a better view at what she was doing. 

"Are you googling "How to Save the World for Dummies", because I already tried that." I murmured.

She snorted, "If anyone were fit to write that book, it'd be us."

"You're not a dummy and I know that look, you've got something." 

She looked down at me with a furrowed brow. "It's not much. Hera said something about the divorce rate being around 50%. That doesn't apply to the entire world, though. Belgium, Portugal, Luxembourg, Czech Republic, and Hungary have divorce rates from 60-70% while India, Chile, and Colombia have under 10%. This isn't exact, because numbers are always changing, but it's safe to assume she wasn't hanging out here."

"Maybe she should have been. Dear Gods, 70%?"

"I guess wealth really doesn't equate to happiness, but a lot of countries have a less normalized divorce process, which isn't good either, but I think Hera mentioned the numbers on purpose. The Gods centralize themselves in the US, because it's looked at as the global powerhouse, " She continued, "It's easily her top priority for marriages to work out here, since the 'American Dream' is still sought after in many parts of the world- even if its an illusion."

"What's the US's divorce rate?"

"Around 53%."

"More like American Nightmare."

"Good one," She said, "Also, Zeus said it happened a week before their wedding anniversary, which was yesterday."

"They were fighting before that, though."

"Yeah, I'm guessing he cheated again," She mused, "And we all know Hera can be a little..."

She paused and I know she was waiting for theatric thunder in the distance, but it seems everyone was a bit too busy trying to tear each other apart to pay attention to what the measly demigods were saying about them.

"... Vengeful." She finished, "What if she lost it while cursing the mistress?"

"Or maybe the other woman stole it."

"Maybe." Though she didn't sound very convinced.

"So, odds are, she could have been anywhere in the United States yesterday. You're right, that isn't much."

She sighed and ran a hand through my hair. "We should go see Rachel."

I sat up and sprung out of bed. When she was right, she was right. I was positive that Rachel already knew what was happening, but it was only a matter of time before she got all glowing eyed and ominous on the tetherball court or something. One time during a three legged race, she started going all spastic and ended up twisting Leo's knee. We needed to keep this as contained as possible or at the very least, get a jump on the madness before it really started. I was a few steps away from the front door of my cabin when my girlfriend cleared her throat.

I turned to see she hadn't moved and despite our drab circumstances, a smug grin tugged at her lips and she wasn't even trying to hide it. 

"What?"

"Y'know, as much as I can appreciate the little blue sharks, I don't think Rachel is going to." She eyed down with intent.

I wish I could say this was the first time I almost walked out the door in just my underwear or that I've never actually walked out in just my underwear before. I'm a creature of habit, and I really need to get into the habit of sleeping in pants. 

* * *

 

Camp was relatively quiet as a result of everyone nursing their own hangovers from Grover's wedding. Gods, it felt like years since the reception, but was it really just the night before? We fit in well with those that were awake, because we looked tired and had headaches of our own. Ours were from slightly more pressing matters, but I still felt for Travis Stoll when he threw up in Katie Gardner's backpack. Were they stumbling out of the same cabin too? 

Before I could even think about commenting on that, one of the Aphrodite girls whistled at Annabeth and me. A few others sent purposeful winks our way too. You'd think after being together for so long, people would find a new focus, but nope. I thought getting thrown into the lake after getting caught kissing would be the worst, but I'll spare you guys the details of how many other times people have tried to catch us in the act. Believe me, I  _wished_ that's why I was tired and not because the Gods decided to ignite war over a feather.

I was always a little jealous of Rachel's setup at camp. She wasn't like the other Oracle and didn't dedicate  _all_ of her time to camp. She still left the perimeters and went to art expos and loved her job. In the mortal world, Rachel was a comicbook artist. Based on all of the crazy paintings and old artists she was obsessed with in high school, this would have been the last thing I thought she'd do. It seemed to mainstream for her. She's actually really good though and Frank said her work on the newer Superman comics is something to die for. I mentioned that construction on New Athens was underway and going well, but Rachel's place was truly a testament of Annabeth's hard work. It was like a queen's palace all compact to the size of a regular 3 bedroom house. 

I did, however, think Annabeth was going to have a heart attack when she saw the beautiful hand-picked interior she designed for Rachel was now covered in various shades of paint. It looked like a crayola factory exploded and we were looking at the crime scene footage. The furniture was swapped out for vintage looking pieces you'd find at yard sales and the hardwood floors were scuffed like they'd been used for 100 years. It might have been a palace on the outside, but the inside reminded me of the inside of Leo's college apartment. It even had that faint "last night's pizza" smell that Leo's place always had... Even if he didn't have pizza. 

"Uh, love what you've done with the place?" I offered since I knew Annabeth was about 2 seconds from blowing a gasket. In her defense, I was there when she was pouring time and work into Rachel's place. Rachel was going to be the most permanent resident of New Athens and needed her place to feel the most like home. She was really careful not to make it feel equally as much an art studio as it was a home. 

"Thanks!" Rachel chirped, oblivious to my girlfriend's reddening face. "I loved how you had the place done up and all, Annabeth, but doesn't this just feel like a totally creative and open space?"

Annabeth hated it with every fiber of her being, but over the years, she and Rachel grew to be really good friends; best friends even. They were definitely closer than I was with Rachel, which I still find hilarious. Not in a "I'll bring this up to Annabeth" kind of hilarious, because I actually like having a girlfriend, but still. 

Instead of freaking out, Annabeth internalized this rant for one exclusively saved for me (thanks, Rachel), and pushed through with what we actually came there for. "I assume you know what's going on with the Gods."

You'd have thought that the business we were referring to was which God got a little too drunk at a Christmas party; not the fact that Hera and Zeus were splitting up and planning on taking the entire universe down with them, because Rachel just rolled her eyes. 

"Ridiculous, isn't it? Say what they want about mortals constantly splitting up and making it their children's problems, but this is taking that to new levels."

"Have you been talking to Apollo?" I asked.

"Nah, most of the Gods are strictly prohibited from keeping in touch with us right now."

"Most?"

"Well, obviously Hades isn't listening to that since he isn't even bothering with all of this. I don't agree with him too often given how he's been known to treat Nico over the years, but he's got a point that this is a severe waste of time. And obviously, Poseidon reached out to you since he seems to actually care what happens when this war starts."

"So, I'm guessing you know we need your prophetic eye on all of this." I said.

She sighed, "Yeah, I figured you guys didn't exactly come over for tea and cookies."

"Tea is gross anyway."

"Wrong." She furrowed her green eyes and then looked to Annabeth. "Has he developed any refine taste over the years?"

"Not unless you include his recent switch from regular Mountain Dew to blue Mountain Dew."

"Ew." Rachel wrinkled her nose and looked at me. "You're such a boy."

"He literally tried to order it in a restaurant before."

"Okay, uh, Gods trying to rip apart the earth?" I interjected, because I've seen conversations like these happen between these two and they could literally go on for hours. Hours that we don't have right now.

"Right," Rachel shook her head, "We are discussing how Mountain Dew doesn't exactly help your swimmers later, young man."

I'd rather fall through Tartarus again than endure that conversation.

"What do you know?" Annabeth asked. 

"I know that there are pieces of the story Hera isn't telling you guys. I'm not exactly sure what they are, but I had this dream last night of Hera with a man... Like, a not-Zeus-man."

"And when you say _with_?" I asked.

She paused to think about that. "Not  _Fifty Shades of Grey_ -with but more like  _13 Going on 30-_ with."

"... What?"

Annabeth sighed, "They weren't boning, but there was definitely sexual tension."

I looked at her quizzically. "You've seen  _13 Going on 30_?"

"And she liked it." Rachel said.

"Shut-up!" Annabeth flushed. "So, while she might not be physically cheating... She might be into someone."

"Or thought she was. I don't know. It kind of blended in and out with one of my own favorite recurring dreams with a young Christian Slater."

"Yeah, that's a reliable source then." I said.

"When it happens, you're going to feel really sorry for saying that. Besides, I'd be nicer to me if you want to hear the prophecy that's been trying to climb up my throat since breakfast."

I never really  _wanted_ to hear a prophecy about me. After all, I've had plenty under my belt for one lifetime, two maybe. Annabeth seemed pretty tired of the whole concept too. I think everyone expected me to feel jealous or envious of the good ole heroic days of yore when I was constantly in danger. When new heroes came to camp and were given quests, people would murmur about them being the *next* Percy Jackson. I never felt envious. I just felt bad for them.

Either way, we didn't have much time to waste, so I reached out and touched Rachel's hand and it basically sent her into shock as it always did. This was moderately concerning the first time you saw it, but now, it was borderline amusing to see the spirit of Delphi take over her body and enchant her into speaking like a serpent. 

 

_"3 shall retrace their steps to stop at the land of greed,_

_To find what was lost and lose what they need._

_Demigods divide and fight into the mud,_

_The line drawn with Wisdom's blood._

_The hero of the eldest Gods will secretly turn,_

_And see to it that Olympus may burn."_

 

 

  

It took a moment, but Rachel's orb-like eyes returned to normal and color flushed back into her cheeks again. As per usual, prophecies made me feel about as easy as I would if I was walking on a tightrope while precariously balanced over molten lava. Prophecies were a tricky thing. They never meant exactly what you think they did. And by the way, whoever decided rhyming would be a nice feature to make it more sing-song and fun was a total dick. Still, after all of these years of being fooled by the ever-smirking fates, my heart was still rattling. 

Annabeth and Rachel didn't say anything, but their gaze was burning into me. They were thinking what I was thinking. Me? Burn down Olympus? I wasn't exactly pleased with how things were going, but do you know how much effort that would take? Yeah, I'm not the kind of guy who would just up and destroy Olympus. I've saved it too many times to want that to happen. Also, I know what kind of danger that could bring to the people I care about. But... If something were to happen to Annabeth because of them, because of their callousness...

 _"The line drawn with Wisdom's blood."_  

"Let's break it down one step at a time." Annabeth placed a hand on my arm, whether she knew what I was thinking or not remained to be seen, but it was slightly relieving to be pulled back to reality. I knew she was worried, but she was right, we had to figure out what we were doing before we could worry about the later details. It didn't stop a chill from going down my back. 

"3. Who are we bringing?" 

"More importantly, where are we going?" She asked.

"You've clearly been there before since you're supposed to retrace your steps," Rachel said. "You've been all over the country, though."

"Yeah, it's been a real national tour of fun," I muttered. "But the land of greed?"

"Vegas," Annabeth blurted out.

Ah, Vegas. Good times. The lights, the parties, the hypnotic lotus eaters that trap you for all of eternity... Fun and light stuff. I will say, I've never played video games as fun as the Lotus Casino and Annabeth has searched for that architecture game at least once a week ever since. They didn't really put up much of a fight when we left either. They were just kind of like "you want to continue living a painful knowledgable life instead of spending all of eternity having fun? Your loss". 

"It's tough to get greedier than those old ladies at the slot machines."

"We should confer with Chiron," She said. "Let him know we're leaving and that we'll need a third for the trip."

"One of us should reach out to Hera," I said. "There's stuff she's not telling us and anything useful she can give about who she thinks stole this feather is helpful."

She nodded sagely, "Then it should probably be you. She still hates my guts."

"Hera hates you?" Rachel asked. "How the hell are you two ever going to get married, then?"

I stumbled and if Annabeth had anything in her mouth, she might have done one of those spit takes.

"Oh come on, this isn't the first time it's ever been brought up. You guys are going to get hitched someday right? Actually, don't tell me. I'll probably know before you anyway."

It wasn't the first time it's been brought up. Obviously, there were hints at Grover's wedding. My mom likes to make little comments every so often. It's never anything too obvious, but for example, I was over there last Sunday for dinner and she told me her engagement ring was bothering her and that when I picked one out for Annabeth, I needed to make sure... Okay, it wasn't subtle at all and I'm now realizing she just worked that into conversation very deliberately and smoothly so that I didn't notice.

Hera's hating Annabeth and how that could ruin any chance of a future for us has come up between us before. I don't ever really have the heart to tell my mom that though.

"I don't know if she hates you..."

Her glare was sharp, "She still sends cows to attack me, Percy." 

"This is New York. How often do you see cows?" Rachel snorted.

Annabeth's stare was dead serious though. "Too many."

"It's a little funny," I chuckled.

"It's also funny when Ares has sent boars after Percy. Remember when that one stole your shoes?"

"It rained that day." I pouted.

"Oh hush, at least it was summer."

"You two are really cute," Rachel crossed her arms. "Pissing off all of Olympus, but as a couple."

* * *

 

Finding Hera really wasn't all that hard, since I'm guessing she was expecting my call. I went to Cabin 2, which was of course empty except for the tribute bunks and furniture to Hera. It was pretty simple and a little unnerving for some reason. Gods were entitled and felt like they  _had_ to have cabins for children even if they didn't have children. It's weird, I know, especially when there are minor Gods and Goddesses who have kids that have to squeeze into overall tighter quarters. Annabeth did her best and did a damned good job, but it still doesn't seem fair to me that there's all this empty space put to no use.

For me, it did come to some use that day, since the second I started to pray to speak to her, she appeared right before me. It seemed a little desperate to me, but I wasn't about to say that to her. The ground shook and the room grew about twenty times brighter. She stood in human form before me. Hera really was gorgeous. All of the Goddesses were. I'm not stupid enough to say which is my personal preference of beauty, but let's just say it's a tie among all the Goddesses. 

"Percy Jackson," Her voice was low, but the commotion her arrival made meant this was unnecessary. Everyone probably already knew that an Olympian was on site right now. 

"Lady Hera," I bowed dutifully. 

"What brings you to my cabin?"

She knew damn well what brought me to her cabin. 

"I request information about this quest that I'm about to embark on to retrieve the lost-"

"-STOLEN!" She bellowed.

I think all of the blood drained out of my body for a moment, but I recovered, "Right, well we know we're supposed to go to Vegas to find it, but we need to retrace our steps to get there."

"I've never stepped foot in Las Vegas since that putrid city has been created. It's been destroying the sanctity of marriage ever since. Why would I go there?"

"Never?"

"Do you doubt me, demigod?" She flared.

"I just think that if there was ever a place to start with trying to fix the divorce rate, nixing Vegas marriages would be the way to go."

She seemed to mull that over for a second and had this distasteful look on her face, clearly either pissed I made a good point or that I thought of something she didn't. You had to be careful with how you spoke to Gods. If their fly is down and they find out you don't tell them? Turned into a plant (no that's not what happened to Thalia). If their fly is down and you tell them the wrong way? Turned into a flightless bird or something. I never seemed to fully learn this lesson. Maybe Annabeth should have come. Or someone else that was also better at dealing with Gods than me... Like the devil. 

"I just want to make sure we can keep this war from happening and prove to Zeus that you're innocent," I recovered.

She liked that, "Very well."

"So, what do you know about the thief?"

"I did not recognize him." She conceded. "I was in Los Angeles, overseeing yet another celebrity engagement. I ended up talking them out of it, thank God. They never would have lasted. You can't get divorced if you're never married."

A big part of me was curious who that was, but I let her keep going.

"He was handsome and..." She stopped. "If you tell anyone what I tell you, I will curse you forever in a way no man wants to be cursed."

I didn't even try to imagine what that meant. "I need to tell Annabeth."

She scoffed, "That brat you continue to run around with out of wedlock? Why? Has she got you under some kind of sexual pact of trust?"

"Er... No? She's just a lot smarter than me and could probably figure out who this is easier if I can tell her what you tell me."

It seemed to have everyone's interests in mind. She nodded curtly. 

"If she tells anyone..."

"... Yeah, I know. Cursed. Continue."

She didn't like being told what to do, but we could only chill uninterrupted in her cabin for so long. I wondered if the rule of being left alone with the opposite sex applied to Goddesses. I doubted it did and even if Hera was beautiful, the thought of doing anything with her made me want to gag.

Again, this is all in my internal monologue here, guys. You can't quote me on that.

"I might have let this man... Court me. Nothing happened. I never disgraced my marital bed nor did we even touch romantically. However, it was nice for the first time in so long, to be listened to and cared for as a first priority. I may seem as though I only care to make the lives of my husband's many mistresses miserable, but it is not easy being constantly deceived for an entire millennia. It is why I take the divorce rate of the mortal world so seriously. Here are people who are too weak to work through it. Now, I'm one of them."

"First of all, just because divorce happens doesn't make people weak," I said. "Sometimes, it's the stronger decision to make, especially if the person was getting hurt or cheated on."

"So, you suggest I should have divorced Zeus before he got the chance to divorce me?"

"No! No no no no. Godly matters are definitely different." I felt like a hypocrite though, telling Hera to work through her differences with Zeus.

"What then?"

"I don't know, maybe you should talk about it?"

"Do you honestly think that's possible?"

Probably not, Zeus was pretty thick-skulled.

"Uh, but killing his mistresses is helping?"

"It certainly acts as a temporary solution. Any solution is a good one."

"I don't know if a therapist would agree to that."

"Who do you think you are? Just because you've managed to not get dumped for a few years and you know all about how relationships work?"

"No, I really don't. You keep asking me."

"Because you are supposed to help me!" She shouted.

"Just... What happened with the guy? What was his name?"

"Charles Miea and we became... Partners of sorts."

"I thought you said nothing happened."

"Partners in crime? Is that how you people say it?"

"Really."

She nodded, "Zeus slept with someone... Shocker. She was a mortal, which made me the angriest. While I understand that the rules have changed, he should still not insult me by being so frivolous. It's not like he slept with royalty or someone with status. She was a low-grade actress from New Jersey and they ended up having a week-long affair across the United States. It didn't take much digging to discover she had someone she was betrothed to. So, I found him and we set out to get back at them by embarrassing them. I didn't tell him about how I was ready to rip the girl limb from limb, but I figured it best to keep him in the dark."

"How romantic. And then he stole your feather?" That sounded dirtier than it needed to.

"I don't believe he understands the significance of it. He grabbed my bag and left me mine in the midst of the night."

"So... Why don't you just ask for it back?"

"Because I cannot find him, Perseus Jackson. Why must you act as if you are waterlogged all of the time?"

"You... A Goddess... Can't find him?"

"No! That's the issue. I don't believe it's his real name and since I already turned the girl into a large dildo, I'm not sure I can get any actual information."

"You turned her into-"

"-He is not mortal, Percy." She said, "There is no way someone of such... Divinity can be."

I felt like if I didn't leave then, it was going to start getting really weird. Weirder, actually. 

"Can I have a map or something with all of the states you stopped in with this guy?"

She waved her hand and one dropped right in front of me, circled with the three big stops they made and spent the night. 

"Do not fail me, Percy Jackson. I will be sure that nothing good comes from your family if you do."

"And if I don't, I request a favor," Bold, right? Saying the Queen of the Goddesses owes me after she just threatened everyone I love. Annabeth would probably say "stupid" as opposed to bold, but she's not here right now.

She gritted her teeth, understanding that she needed me. "What is it?"

I smiled.

* * *

 

When I regrouped with Annabeth at the Big House, she had Grover by her side. He looked even more worried and nervous than normal, so it was fair to guess that he was up to speed with what was happening. 

"Hey!" I waved the map at them and everyone turned to me. 

"Percy, we have to go to Jersey." She said.

I wrinkled my eyebrows. "How did you know that?"

She tilted her head, "How did  _you_ know that?"

I showed her the map Hera gave me. "These are all the stops she made. She wasn't clear when she felt she lost the feather, but I do think we'll find it in Vegas."

"Why stop elsewhere, then?" 

"Perhaps there is more to find than just the feather," Chiron nodded solemnly. "You three have quite a journey ahead of you."

"Just like the good old days," Grover smiled weakly.

"Wait, you're coming?" I didn't know whether to be excited or nervous. 

"Well, you're retracing all the old stomping ground we made on our first quest together. I figured I might as well come along and make it truly a full-circle experience. Besides, I hear you need a third."

"But, your honeymoon..."

"... Isn't going to happen if the camp and the entire world is going to be destroyed, Percy," He clamped a hand on my shoulder. "I'm with you til the end, man. I really don't want to die."

"Grover can navigate and sniff out monsters that you cannot, making you less susceptible to attack," Chiron added. "It is not only poetic, but efficient."

"Did Annabeth tell you the prophecy?" I knew by the grim looks on all of their faces that she definitely did.

"We will keep this under wraps for as long as humanly possible. I will do my best to maintain the peace, but I'm not a miracle worker."

"I don't know about that," Annabeth smiled up at him. "You've done pretty well on all of us."

"Please keep me in the loop. You're not children anymore, so the run of the mill monsters shouldn't be as attracted to you, but I think a very dark presence is clouding around us and someone wants us to destroy each other."

"Like another Titan?"

He shook his head. "No, this is something different. This is new."

For something to be "new" to an immortal centaur, well, that was impressive and terrifying all in the same breath.

"I fear this is your most important quest yet, Percy Jackson." He said.

"We'll keep him out of trouble," Annabeth smirked at me and Grover nodded.

"I'm sure you will," He laughed. "You always have."

"Yeah, not so great of a job considering where we're at," I teased and she swatted my shoulder. 

"We're demigods, not wizards," Grover added.

I smiled at both of them- my two best friends. Once again, we were off to find a stolen Godly possession on a short time frame and springing into battle against an unknown threat. Grover was right. This was like the good old days.

 

 

 

 


End file.
